OVER 2 YOU 179 (04/05/04)

COMPUTER COLLECTION

It is my intention to start a modest collection of personal and home computers. Needless to say it will include early IBM and Apple models (which I already have) and simpler machines like the Sinclair Spectrum, but I would like suggestions for other less obvious but equally historic models, preferably ground breaking machines that were the first, fastest or most advanced of their day.  

Will George, via email

The Commodore PET was the first ready to go computer, with built in monitor and cassette deck for storage. The Sinclair ZX80 was the first computer for less than £100, and its successor the ZX81 went on to sell over a million machines. The Spectrum as mentioned certainly deserves a place.  The BBC Micro from Acorn was hugely successful in schools; some are even still in use! There were also many unusual machines. The Jupiter Ace used Forth as its resident programming language rather than the usual BASIC and the Mattel Aquarius has to be remembered as probably the most unsuccessful micro ever. Will mentioned Apple, certainly the Apple II was phenomenally successful and the Apple Lisa, the forerunner to the Mac introduced the graphic interface and mouse we are all familiar with today.

The Museum of Computing has over 120 different home computers, so I suggest Will invests in a large storage area!
Simon Webb, Curator, Museum of Computing,

www.museum-of-computing.org.uk
 

How about the Amstrad PCW series, which opened the personal computing door to millions?

Peter Gray, via email

The Atari ST range and Falcon are musts in any collection.  I was impressed by the display of old computers at Bletchley Park on a visit there a couple of years ago.
Alan Jackson, via email

I don’t think any collection would be complete without at least one MSX computer. This was an ill-judged attempt by the Japanese consumer electronics industry in the mid 1980s to establish a new ‘standard’, to compete with the emerging PC format and the Sinclair and Amstrad home PC markets. It flopped badly but you can still pick up machines and software from the likes of Sony, JVC and Panasonic quite cheaply on ebay.

Shaun Nichols, via email

The Sharp MZ80K from 1981 should be included. It was a contemporary of the Commodore Pet and Tandy TRS80 and had an integral keyboard, black and white screen and cassette recorder for loading/saving programs.  It had a market-leading 48k of RAM, but its unique selling point was that BASIC was not built-in but had also to be loaded via cassette, which took time but enabled many different and ingenious variations of the language to be used.  I still have my MZ80K and it still works perfectly, though serious uses for it are a little hard to find.

Geoff Long, Milton Keynes

My first computer was a Commode Vic20, which came out about the same time as the first Sinclair machine and was the predecessor of the Commodore 64. I still have the machine, with its tape recorder and plotter/printer and some tapes, all of which worked last time I connected it all up. If Mr. George can arrange collection he is welcome to have it.

Jim Vincent, via email

I have in storage two Intertec Data Systems Superbrain II computers, circa 1983/4, which Will George is welcome to have if he wishes.

Graham L Parkin, via email

I have two Word Processors Monotype 75 (new £8,000 each!) and an IBM printer circa 1975 and working when last used.  I would be happy to donate them to anyone willing to arrange and pay for collection and delivery.       

Frank Porter, via email

Any Acorn machine from Atom to RiscPC via the BBC series and the Archimedes (and I think there was a pre-Atom model for home assembly).  The only problem is that they are still so good that lots are still in use, if only for specialised applications.  My old (1982) BBC Model B still works like a dream.  There are still active user groups (generally under the banner of RiscOS, the Acorn developed GUI operating system introduced for the Archimedes, some aspects of which were adopted by MS in 1990s versions of Windows) and these groups have shows where there are often charity stalls selling older models - and as well as ebay there are newsgroups where Acorn kit is bought and sold.

Roger Hird, via email

LITHOGRAPHIC CONVERSION

I am trying to convert photographs to lithograph (black or white, no greyscales) drawings, with a better degree of definition than available with PSP/Photoshop pencil tools. Using Greyscales > Glowing Edges > Negative > Reduce Colour Depth to 2, gives quite a good result, but can anyone do better, or recommend any other program? 

Geoff Green, via email

I can recommend an article by Kenneth Naversen that appeared in the British Journal of Photography a couple of years ago. Briefly, his technique is: Greyscale > Unsharp Mask (applied at maximum strength) > Poster Edges > Threshold. This will provide a range of very interesting effects, depending on the values chosen at various stages of the process. 

Richard Hann, via email

An easy way of getting a lithographic effect in Photoshop is to lower the contrast of the image until it there is good detail in both highlights and shadows. In Filter/Sharpen apply Unsharp Masking with the Amount set to 500 percent. Set Radius to between 1and 2 pixels. Set Threshold to zero levels. In Image/Adjust apply Threshold adjusting levels as required. The values may need to be varied a little according to the nature of the subject and the file size.
Mike Busselle, via email

CAN YOU HELP

Can anyone suggest a way of making labels for bottles, including clip art and text, to make my home made wine look more professional?

Carol West, Welwyn Garden City

My son needs often sends long hours travelling around districts by car looking at houses. His list of properties contains post codes and it would be wonderful if someone could suggest a computer program that could arrange the addresses in a sequence, to enable them reached in as short a time as possible.

Dr. Dale Beckett, via email